


Cotton Mouth

by rebiTV



Series: Hotel Hopping [6]
Category: Marble Hornets
Genre: Like so much goddamn pining, M/M, Pining, this fic is just tim stewing in his feelings, we're getting there boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-25
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22398619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rebiTV/pseuds/rebiTV
Summary: Tim is good at compartmentalizing, but even better at overthinking.
Relationships: Jay Merrick/Timothy "Tim" Wright
Series: Hotel Hopping [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1335877
Comments: 12
Kudos: 71





	Cotton Mouth

**Author's Note:**

> Heyyyy guyyysss, sorry I dropped off the face of the earth for like,,,6 months,,,,,in my defense, college is hard. :') But I'm back babey! I can't promise a consistent schedule, but I won't be abandoning this series. This bitch gettin finished, one way or another.

Once he was aware of them, Tim’s feelings for Jay settled into him like an itch just under his skin. Cloying and sharp, setting everything in sharper contrast. Everything Jay did seemed more important now, the way his clothes hung off his frame, the tone of his voice when he was unsure of what to say. A million useless details filed away in a space between Tim’s ribs.

And Tim was okay with that, just, keeping details,  _ noticing  _ things, brushing against something without touching it. 

He was not going to tell Jay any of it. He had no right to. They were running from a monster, not at a goddamn high school dance. If there ever was a time unsuited for an ill-conceived romantic confession, it was now. He didn’t need to add a layer of soap-opera drama to what was already a massive clusterfuck of a situation. 

He would just continue as normal. He would just- notice things. It was fine.

It was just so  _ distracting.  _

He wouldn’t even get caught on big things- it wasn’t like Jay was acting any different. Things he didn’t even notice a week ago were suddenly all he could focus on. The way Jay’s voice stalled uncertainly, only to later focus with a feather soft force. The way his pale fingers stood out against his black camera. 

Tim wasn’t acting any different, at least, he didn’t think he was. He was- at the very least- better at subtlety than Jay was, and Jay was probably the most oblivious ‘detective’ that Tim had ever known. But still. Sometimes he felt like he was holding up a neon sign saying ‘I LOVE YOU, JAY.’ and any moment Jay would call him out on it. 

But he never did. And Jay wasn’t exactly known for ‘politely keeping information to himself’, so it was probably safe to assume that he didn’t notice anything. 

Which was just as well.

Tim felt a bit like he was stuck, his thought process circling back on itself. He really ought to just stop overthinking it, but that was much easier said than done. He felt like he had words lodged in his throat, warm and urgent, and every time Jay’s shoulder brushed against his, they would jump up and rest, hot and wild, under his tongue. 

It became its own sort of routine, after a while. Wake up, figure out what they were doing for food, hastily compartmentalize his feelings for Jay, check twitter, go to sleep. It was fine. He was fine. 

Nothing had changed, really. 

He rubbed the heels of his hands over his eyes, letting dull color flood over his eyelids. The ceiling was the same dull white. There wasn’t a lot of variety in cheap hotels, turns out. Jay was hunched over his laptop, as usual. It couldn’t be good for his back, sitting like that all the time. Tim wanted to go over there, remind him to sit up straight, give his poor spine a break. Tim wanted to drag him out of his shitty chair and into bed, make sleep, rest, for just a second. Tim wanted to drag him into bed and just hold him, wanted to kiss him on the back of his neck, he wanted, he wanted, he  _ wanted. _

He took an irritated breath in. He could feel Jay’s eyes move to glance at him, and he turned over, avoiding his gaze. He didn’t need Jay worried about him, on top of everything else. He knew if Jay thought he was hiding something from him he would poke and prod and just try to wriggle out an answer from him. And Tim didn’t think he could deal with that right now. 

“I’m going to bed.” Tim said. Jay turned to look at him. 

“Okay.” Jay replied, smiling just slightly. Tim wanted to kiss him. Fuck. 

“You should probably go to bed too.” Tim continued. “It’s…” He looked at the clock, “Late.”

“I will! Just let me finish-” Tim gave him a Look, and Jay’s face- softened. Or deflated. Somewhere between the two. Either way, it made Tim’s stomach flip. 

“Fine. Just give me a second. Really, I’ll go to bed soon.”

Tim believed him. He’s glad, Jay looks tired. Jay always looks tired, but still. But still. 

\----

A few minutes later, the lights go off. Tim feels the bed sink with Jay’s weight. He feels full and weightless, his stomach full of cotton, or clouds, or, or, or…

He should sleep. Take his own advice. 

He stares at the ceiling, and wants, wants,  _ wants, _ for another hour. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! and thanks again for your patience :'). One day these boys will figure their shit out.


End file.
